Reclosable plastic container



y 1965 D. J. LINGENFELTER 3,181,583

RECLOSABLE PLASTI C CONTAINER Filed Sept. 24, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 a i /4 i i I is ,8 22 20 F4 30 INVENTOR DA lV/EL J. L/NGENFEL 75/? 5V H/S ATTORNEYS HARE/5, K/ECH, Russzu. 6: KERN May 1965 D. J. LINGENFELTER 3,181,583

RECLOSABLE PLASTIC CONTAINER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 24, 1962 FIG. .5.

INVENTOR. DAN/EL J L/A/GENFEL TEE United States Patent M 3,181,583 RECLOSABLE PLASTIC CONTAINER Daniel J. Lingenfelter, 1404 Bruce Ave., Glendale 2, Calif. Filed Sept. 24, 1962, Ser. No. 225,820 8 Claims. (Cl. 150-3) This invention relates to a flexible bag and the like, especially designed to facilitate filling and provided with an interengaging means for opening and closing the bag, along with an auxiliary sealing means.

Flexible bags made of thermoplastic synthetic resin materials are in wide use and are frequently provided with an interengaging means that permits the repeated opening and closing of the bag. Flexible interengaging means 'which are sometimes known as plastic zippers usually take the form of tongue and groove arrangements. An inter-engaging means commonly comprises two elongated enclosure strips made of flexible material which are disposed in an overlapped position. The closure Strips are commonly bonded by heat scaling to the top edges of the open end of the bag. One of the closure strips carries a tongue or rib-like member which extends the length of the mouth of the bag. The other of the closure strips has a longitudinally extending groove positioned along the other side of the bag which is disposed to receive the rib-like portion of the other strip to provide the locking engagement. Such a plastic zipper lock may be repeatedly opened and closed by grasping the two strips and pulling outwardly with both hands. It has been proposed heretofore that the closure strips be temporarily interconnected by a rupturable web, the purpose of the web being to provide an air-tight seal or a means which will discourage pilfering.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved thermoplastic bag of the type employing a pair of closure strips, which improved bag is readily filled and simply manufactured. The improved plastic bag of the invention is manufactured open at its bottom and closed at its upper end with the upper end being provided with a rupturable transverse tearline through which access may be had to the closed bag. A pair of flexible closure strips having interlocking means arranged on adjoining faces thereof is held to the upper or closed end of the bag on opposite sides of the rupturable tearline. With this improved structure, the bag is readily filled by the user, this being achieved through the open bottom following which the bottom is heat sealed to close the bag. Heretofore the closure strips have been commonly applied to the top of the bag following its closing, which is a considerably more tedious operation than is the procedure of simply heat sealing the edges of the bag bottom together as is done in the filling and closing of the bag of the invention.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the reading of the following specification.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the flexible container bag of the invention being filled;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the filled and sealed container of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view in perspective taken along line 33 of FIG. 2 with the section being inverted from the position of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view in elevation showing the closure means of FIG. 3 in open position; and

FIGS. 5, 6, and 7 are sectional views in perspective taken along line 33 of FIG. 2 illustrating still other forms of the bag of the invention, with each view being inverted from that of FIG. 2.

Bag 10 of the invention, made of a thermoplastic syn- 3,181,583 Patented May 4, 1965 thetic resin such as polyethylene, has its open end placed directly beneath a filling apparatus 12. The bag 10 of the invention is provided to the user open at its bottom with its upper end being provided with a pair of flexible closure strips 14 and 16. The closure strips as best seen in FIG. 3 have complementary interlocking means arranged on adjoining or confronting faces thereof. The closure strip 14 has two elongated grooves 18 and 20 which have a common wall 22 therebetween whose outer end is enlarged to provide a rib-like member or tongue 24 which is resiliently held in an elongated groove 26 of the companion closure strip 16. The closure strip 16 is provided with two rib-like members 28 and 30 which are seated respectively in the grooves 18 and 20 of the other closure strip 14. The closure strips are made of pliable plastic and at their inner ends are heat sealed to opposite sides of the plastic bag It) adjacent its closed top. The particular embodiment of the bag illustrated in FIG. 3 is formed by a single continuous thermoplastic sheet that is folded at its top upon itself to provide two face-to-face panels 19 and 21 that are heat sealed together along opposite edges to form the two side edges of the bag. A rupturable tearline 32 is located along the fold at the top of the bag. The tearline 32 must be broken or ruptured, following opening of the flexible closure strips 14 and 16 in order to gain access to the contents of the bag. The ruptured tearline 32 of the opened bag is illustrated in FIG. 4. A principal advantage in having a closed upper end with the closure strips astraddle thereof and an open bottom is the ease which the bag may be filled by the user. This arrangement is a decided improvement over the practice heretofore of applying the closure strips to the bag following filling through the upper end of the bag.

In opening the sealed bag, the flexible closure strips 14 and 16 are gasped in the hands and pulled outwardly to disengage the two rib-like members 28 and 30 from their respective grooves 18 and 20. Further pulling of the strips 14, 16 will result in rupture of the tearline 32, giving access to the contents of the bag. The bag may be closed by returning the two rib-like members 28 and 30 to their respective grooves 18 and 20.

Still another possible arrangement of the bag of the invention is illustrated in FIG. 5, wherein as in the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4, there is provided a single continuous thermoplastic sheet which is folded upon itself at its upper end to provide two face-to-face panels 40 and 42. The bottom (not illustrated) of this bag is open and the opposed edges of the two panels 40 and 42 are heat sealed together to form the side edges of the bag. A rupturable tearline 44 is located on the panel 42 adjacent but away from the folded upper end 46. Respective ones of a pair of closure strips 48 and 50 are bonded to the panel 42 on opposite sides of the rupturable tearline 44. The pair of closure strips resembles that described earlier, with one of the strips, namely strip 50, being provided with two rib-like members 51 and 53 and the other strip 48 with two grooves 55 and 57. There is one principal difference in the arrangement of FIG. 5 compared with that of FIG. 3 in that the closure strip 48 has a plane portion 48a extending in an opposite direction substantially parallel to a corresponding plane portion 50a of the closure strip 50. In the arrangement of FIG. 3 such plane portions extend in the same direction. Following filling of bag of FIG. 5 its bottom is closed by heat sealing the ends of the panels 40 and 42 together.

The bag of FIG. 6 generally resembles that of FIG. 5 in that a pair of closure strips 56 and 58 constructed as described in FIG. 5 is fastened to a panel 60 which forms one side of the bag. The panel 60 is heat sealed along three of its edges to a correspondingly shaped and sized panel 62. The two panels 60 and 62 define a bag which is open as before at its bottom end. A rupturable tearline The bag of FIG. 7 comprises two similarly shaped and equally sized thermoplastic panels '68 and 70 which are heat sealed together along three of their I edges to provide the closed top of the bag "of a bag that is open at its bottom end. More strictlyispeaking, the upper enclof the bag is formed by spot sealing, as is best seen in the cutaway portion of FIG. 7,-thetwo panels 68 and 70 together to provide a discontinuoustearline 72. The pair of closture strips 74 and 76 isbonded to the .upperend of the-bag with the strips being fastened to different ones of the panels 68 and 70 andastraddle the" rupturable tearline 72. The details of the closure strips 74 and 76 are the same as't hose earlier described.

Although exemplar'y embodiments ofthe invention have been disclosed herein for purposes of illustration, it will be understood that various changes, modifications, and substitutions may be incorporated in such embodiments without departing from the'spirit or the invention as defined by the claims which follows.

I claim: 7 e

1. A fillable, flexible container comprising:

a thermoplastic bag open at its bottom and closed at-its 7 upper end,'said upper end being provided with a rupturable, transverse tearline through which'access may be hadto the'closed bag, said bag being opened at its v bottom but closable by heat sealing and a pair of flexible closure strips, said closure stripshaving interlocking means arranged on adjoining faces there of for selectively'engaging to connect saidstrips and for disengaging to disconnect said strips and being respectively held to theiupper .end' ofv the bag' on opposite sides of therupturable tearline.

2. A container in accordance with claim l wherein the bag comprises a continuous thermoplastic sheet whi ch is folded upon itself to provide two face-to-face panels that are heat sealedtogether along opposed edges to form side edges of the bag with the respective closure strips being bonded to separate panels astraddlethe tearline located transversely of thcf sheet at the'rtoldedclosed end; j V

3. A container in accordance with claim l wherein the bag is formed from ,two thermoplastic panels placed faceto-face and spot sealed together across one end to form' the closed upper end and rupturable tearline of the bag,

with the respective closure strips being bonded to separate panels astraddle the rupturable tearline. V V V 4. A container in accordance with claim '1 wherein the bag comprises a continuous thermoplastic sheet which'is' folded upon itself at the bags upper end to provide two face-to-face panels that are heat sealed togetheralong opposed edges vto form side edges of the bag, with the 7 said ba'g References Cited bythe Examiner i W V UNITED' STATES 'PATENTS r 2,635,788 74/53 Snyder etal. 22962 2,780,261 .2/57 SVEC et al. "-3 2,789,609 4/57 POStV 150-3 2,878,849 3/59 Lingenfelter 611 31. 1503 2,916,197 12/59 Detrie et al. 7 2,973,131 2/61 'Mead etal. 22966 3,024,962 3/62 M6lSter-" 22962 rupturable tearline being located on one of the panels adjacent but away from thetolded end, said two' closure 7 strips being bonded to saidtone panel on opposite sides of bag'cornprises two thermoplastic panelsdisposed face-toface and heat sealed together; across one; end thereof and along opposed edges 1to fo'rm opposed side} edges of the bag, with the rupturable tearline'being loc atedon one of the panels adjacent but away from the :heat seal, said two closure strips'being bonded to said one panel on opposite sides of the rupturable tearline. a ;6. A container in accordance-withclaim 1 wherein said interlocking means includes grooveslon one of said strips and cooperating'tongues on theother of said strips.

A flexible container fillablefrom its bottom comprising:

' a plast-ic bag end, 'said bag including at least two face-to-face ip'anels forming sides of the bag, at least one ,of said panels beingprovided With a transverse tearline. ad-,

jac entsaid upper end through which access may be had tow the closed bag; and V I a V a pair offiexible closure strips secured to the'upper end of said bag on opposite .sides of said tearline, said closure strips having interlocking means movable between an open and a closed position and disposed above saidtearline on" adjoining faces thereof for providing access to said tearline from the ,exterior of said bag in said open position and for precluding such access in said; closed position. V -8. A'containerin accordance with claim -7 wherein one of said closure strips is secured to one of said panels at the upper end thereof and the otherof said closure strips is secured to the other of said panels atthe upper end thereof, each of said strips extending beyond the upper endof said bag, said interlocking means-being disposed on adjoining faces of said strips above the upper end of FRANKLIN T. GARRETT, PrimaryExaminer.

open at-itst bottom and closedatits upper V 

1. A FILLABLE, FLEXIBLE CONTAINER COMPRISING: A THERMOPLASTIC BAG OPEN AT ITS BOTTOM AND CLOSED AT ITS UPPER END, SAID UPPER END BEING PROVIDED WITH A RUPTURABLE, TRANSVERSE TEARLINE THROUGH WHICH ACCESS MAY BE HAD TO THE CLOSED BAG, SAID BAG BEING OPENED AT ITS BOTTOM BUT CLOSABLE BY HEAT SEALING; AND A PAIR OF FLEXIBLE CLOSURE STRIPS, SAID CLOSURE STRIPS HAVING INTERLOCKING MEANS ARRANGED ON ADJOINING FACES THEREOF FOR SELECTIVELY ENGAGING TO CONNECT SAID STRIPS AND FOR DISENGAGING TO DISCONNECT SAID STRIPS AND BEING RESPECTIVELY HELD TO THE UPPER END OF THE BAG ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE RUPTURABLE TEARLINE. 